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02/23/2009

We had missed last week's episode of NPR's "This American Life" until a reader told us that we should check it out. But now we're oh so glad that we did. And so we're paying the favor forward, inviting you to also head over to the show's official site to listen to the show's second act -- a tale of two perfectly average young girls who have common interests, tastes, goals, and joys.

Oh, and both just so happened to have been born boys:

Act Two. Tom Girls.

Lilly and Thomasina have a lot in common. They’re both 8 years old. And they were both born boys, although it became clear pretty early on that they'd prefer to be girls. There aren’t all that many kids in the world like them, but recently, at a conference in Seattle on transgender parenting, they met. And they immediately hit it off. They could talk about things with each other that they'd never been able to share with other friends back home. And that’s comforting, even if they never see each other after the conference ends. Producer Mary Beth Kirchner tells the story, with production help from Rebecca Wyker. (17 minutes)374: Somewhere Out There [This American Life]

Keep thriving, lil' lasses.

Your thoughts

This is an amazing, simply heartwarming story (I don't know that I've ever used that adjective before!), and I've kept it open on my desktop all week to listen to. True confession: I get a little choked each time I listen-- not so much over their personal situations, because it sounds as though the families are extremely understanding and supportive, but because of the way society in general is treating them. No child --no adult, in fact-- should *ever* have to face such hatred. I, too, recommend everyone listen-- move the playback button about halfway across the dial to skip the first act if you're short on time.

(Not to be a pedant, but actually NPR does not and has never distributed This American Life. PRI, Public Radio International, has been the national distributor for it since it started getting nationwide play in 1996.)